AI condemns ‘shameful’ world response

Rights group Amnesty international has published its latest report in Beirut ahead of World Refugee Day on June 20 calling attention towards the “worst crisis” faced since World War II.

The report slammed the world leaders for “condemning millions of refugees to an unbearable existence" and called on the nations to join hands to resolve the refugee crisis through reforming domestic and international policies. It criticised the nations for failing to provide the required humanitarian protection and cited that the crisis wouldn’t be solved until the international community recognizes it as a global problem. The group urged the international community to establish a fund and to contribute towards re-settling millions of displaced refugees around the world. According to the report, Syria witnessed the world’s largest refugee crisis with four million people fleeing the country. Around 95 percent of the Syrian refugees are currently residing in Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq and Egypt. The countries, in turn are struggling to cope with the influx. It was followed by the crisis along the Mediterranean Sea route, Africa and Southeast Asia. Refugees from Sub Saharan African countries come up to around 30 lakhs. People flee persecution, poverty and famine in countries like Libya, Yemen, Sudan, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Middle East Republic taking asylum in the neighbouring countries. The report says that the number of people forcibly displaced from their homes exceeded 50 million in 2013 due to internal conflicts and crisis.

Internal Displacement Monitoring centre based in Geneva reports that 30, 000 people turn refugees on a daily basis, one third of which are Arabs. At present, 38 million refugees across the globe are in want of food and shelter. In 2014, 3, 500 people lost their lives while trying to cross the extremely dangerous Mediterranean sea. Around 1, 865 migrants reportedly drowned this year. The Rohingya Muslims have been suffering discrimination for decades in the Buddhist-majority Myanmar have been considered illegal settlers and are still stranded at sea in smuggler boats between Indonesia and Malaysia unable to land due to the entry denied by both countries. The heartbreaking plight of the Rohingyas was not sufficient to open the eyes of the world countries. No effective action has been taken so far in this regard. Existence of imperialism, the tyrannical rule of the autocratic leaders, communal and racial conflicts along with several other issues drive people away from their homes. The imperial powers, undoubtedly, has a huge role in aggravating the refugee crisis. That the US is trying to create political instability in the Afro-Asian countries and unleashing conflicts in the name of race as well as language is known to everyone. As a result, terrorists increase in number and the Western powers, in turn take steps to uproot them. Countries like Iraq and Syria that have become a battle field for these powers have almost been wiped out from the world map. Millions of men, women and children lose their lives in their attempts to survive wars, human traffickers and governments who pursue ‘selfish political interests’ without showing ‘basic human compassion’. No voice has been raised against the exploiting powers and the UN is still in a wavering stand. Whether the indifference towards the hapless refugees would continue or steps to re-settle them would be taken, is yet to be seen.